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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26221510">Breakfast at Bruce's</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ImBackBoi/pseuds/ImBackBoi'>ImBackBoi</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>A Million On My Soul [4]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Batman - All Media Types</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alfred is there, Bruce Angsts, F/M, Father Todd is not who you think he is, Father has words and will not be denied, Gen, Time Travel, but in another part of the manor and literally says nothing in the entire fic</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 10:02:44</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,619</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26221510</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ImBackBoi/pseuds/ImBackBoi</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Bruce walks into his kitchen one morning to find a visitor from the future. Things go about as well as they ever do.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>but they are implied - Relationship, unspecified</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>A Million On My Soul [4]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1522625</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>28</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Breakfast at Bruce's</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This cannot be said enough: I stress-write. Unfortunately, it's rarely in the form of chapters for actual lengthy fics that go places. </p>
<p>This is kind of a mess? And I'm not completely pleased with it. But it works.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Bruce stopped in the doorway to the kitchen.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>There was a man, a priest, standing in the middle of the kitchen, hands behind his back, peering around in the early morning light at his surroundings.</p>
<p>Bruce wondered if the priest was a figment of his imagination. Or hallucination.</p>
<p>“Fascinating.” The priest muttered, “Dad's going to flip so hard. Everyone is going to lose their - Shit.”</p>
<p>Maybe not.</p>
<p>“You can talk to me, you know,” the priest said, “I can see you in the window.”</p>
<p>“Who are you?”</p>
<p>“Father Todd,” the priest answered, finally turning, “And you're Bruce Wayne.”</p>
<p>“Jason...?”</p>
<p>No. The stature was right, the features were similar, and the white forelock was in the same damn place (how Bruce hated that white streak), but the coloring was off. The voice was wrong. A difference in the shape of the eye.</p>
<p>And Jason wasn't a priest.</p>
<p>“Nope. That's my dad.”</p>
<p>Wait.</p>
<p>What?</p>
<p>Father Todd grinned at him. It was so strikingly reminiscent of his dead boy that Bruce couldn't deny it. His gut wouldn't let him, even if he wanted to run every test known to man.</p>
<p>“And no, you may not draw blood to confirm,” Father Todd rolled his eyes, “I suspect I wont be here that long. Hell, I'm not even sure how I got here in the first place, but if I know my family, they wont let it stand for long.”</p>
<p>“This isn't the first time you've appeared out of time?”</p>
<p>Bruce finally moved into the kitchen. Where was Alfred?</p>
<p>Father Todd watched him carefully. Curiously.</p>
<p>“No, but I've been targeted before by other means.”</p>
<p>In through the nose, out through the mouth.</p>
<p>“How old are you?”</p>
<p>“Fishing for information? They always said you were a detective before anything else.”</p>
<p>“We've never met?”</p>
<p>“No.”</p>
<p>Silence.</p>
<p>“I'm pretty good friends with your family though,” Father added, “Your children are my friends. I baptized your first grandchild not to long ago as a matter of fact.”</p>
<p>Bruce froze.</p>
<p>“Is it safe? To give you information? I mean,” Father rubbed his chin, “I'm already here, so things have already started to change, maybe. If I give you information about the distant future, will you fuck it up by trying to ensure that future, or will you just let it be and be unsurprised by things that come your way?”</p>
<p>“I thought priests didn't swear.”</p>
<p>Father Todd laughed.</p>
<p>“Common misconception,” the Father grinned. He did that a lot, “I should tell you the story about the priest in Mexico who cussed out the kids playing on the altar and then their parents for letting them be disrespectful.”</p>
<p>Silence.</p>
<p>“Maybe another time.”</p>
<p>More silence.</p>
<p>“I've never been here before,” Father Todd said absently, “Attie has, once, but she was too small to remember it well. Bad times.”</p>
<p>“Is your father still alive?”</p>
<p>Blue-green eyes narrowed unnervingly and yes, this man was definitely Jason's son.</p>
<p>“Is yours?”</p>
<p>The world crashed down around him.</p>
<p>“What?”</p>
<p>“Your father, the man who raised you and loved you, is he still alive?” Father Todd's voice resonated warmly in kitchen bathed in golden sunlight. “Dad always said that you could never let go. That you were always clinging to the past. To the what was and what could have been. Breathe, Bruce, embrace your present. Something terrible happened, yes, I'm sorry. No one should have had to go through what you did... but, there are other people out there who have been through worse. Who are going through worse, who <em>will</em> go through much, <em>much</em> worse.”</p>
<p>Bruce's eyes burned. It was to bright in the kitchen.</p>
<p>“If that one terrible night hadn't happened, would you have the family that you have now? The friends you have now?” Father Todd continued, “If that one terrible night hadn't happened, who is to say that something much, much more terrible wouldn't have happened later?”</p>
<p>Father Todd wasn't completely wrong in that assumption. Knowing what he did now about Joe Chill and the Court of Owls... well, the thought left much to be desired.</p>
<p>“Would you still be the same person you are today? Richard always told me you were the most compassionate person he'd ever met. Uncle Tim said your capacity for good was astronomical. Damian claims you were generous and charitable to a fault, that you were always giving more and more of yourself to others. Of course, he then added that this was a fault because it rarely left anything for your family, eventually driving away the people who loved you and needed you.” Father Todd paused. He seemed lost in thought a moment, but then quickly drew himself back to the present, “Grandpa said that your capacity for love knew no bounds, and where there were no boundaries, that's where the trouble started.”</p>
<p>Little motes of dust flickered in the light.</p>
<p>“Grandpa?”</p>
<p>“Grandpa Alfred,” Father nodded, “He died a while ago. I'm actually named after him.”</p>
<p>Father Alfred Todd grinned brightly.</p>
<p>There was a roaring in Bruce's ears, he shut his eyes, counted backwards from ten, and when he opened them, Father Alfred Todd was still there.</p>
<p>“Would you like to know what I think?”</p>
<p>Bruce nodded faintly.</p>
<p>“I think you still have time before shit hits the fan. Grandpa is obviously still alive,” Father Alfred Todd gestured to the spotless kitchen, “But it's pretty obvious that you've got some heavy shit weighing on you. You need to talk to someone. Anyone. I know Father Stromwell pretty well, so he'd be my recommendation for a neutral party. And you know, maybe try having a little faith.”</p>
<p>They stared at each other. Father smirked.</p>
<p>“The past is history, the future a mystery, but today is a gift. Which is why they call it the present.”</p>
<p>“Did you literally just plagiarize Kung Fu Panda? Isn't stealing a sin?”</p>
<p>Bruce's head snapped to the side.</p>
<p>Father sighed.</p>
<p>“It was a <em>quote</em>. How long have you been there?” </p>
<p>“About ten minutes,” said a middle aged Allen look alike (clone?) dressed in an emerald green super suit, “Nice sermon by the way, how long have you been thinking about it.”</p>
<p>Father made a face at the other man.</p>
<p>“You're not Barry.”</p>
<p>“Nope,” Not-Allen popped his 'p', “You truly <em>are</em> the worlds greatest detective.”</p>
<p>Father held his face in his hands.</p>
<p>“Why?”</p>
<p>“Because I'm the one with speedforce,” Not-Allen inspected his fingernails on one hand, then buffed them on his suit, “Duh. Also, don't be rude, I'm like, 20 years your senior, kid. I changed your diapers. Also, Dad is <em>pissed. </em>Beyond pissed. Everyone is pissed. Apparently, this whole thing was an accident and because of that, Dad had to talk to Dick. Then I had to put this fucking thing on again. You know how much I hate this thing, all it does is paint a target on my back.”</p>
<p>Father nodded.</p>
<p>“True.”</p>
<p>“You have a large family?” Bruce asked suddenly, desperately.</p>
<p>Both men stared at him with nearly identical looks.</p>
<p>“That,” the speedster said, “is such a fucking understatement, I don't even know where to begin.”</p>
<p>Father Todd snorted.</p>
<p>“Anyways. Are you ready yet?”</p>
<p>“Almost,” the Father nodded, “Just a few more parting words.”</p>
<p>“Hurry it up then. I want to get back. 42 weeks and she still hasn't popped yet,” the speedster scowled, “I just hope this one doesn't come out on fire.”</p>
<p>“Just. Stop talking, please, some things I don't need to know.”</p>
<p>Allen-Clone cackled and made hurry-it-up motions.</p>
<p>Father Todd looked at him.</p>
<p>“There are few things I just want you to consider. Write them down or whatever so you can google them after you wipe your memory or whatever,” he rolled his eyes, “Anyways, did you know that until very, very recently, the Catholic church has never condemned capital punishment? Not once have they forbidden the death penalty. They've never denied people the right to defend themselves, even to the point of killing their attacker.”</p>
<p>“The church is corrupt.”</p>
<p>“The people may be fallible, Bruce Wayne, but her teachings are not. Are you god? Or are you human? Have you never been wrong before?”</p>
<p>Bruce scowled.</p>
<p>“That's Jason talking.”</p>
<p>“A little bit.” Father Todd tilted his head, “But what harm could it do to ensure the Joker gets tried for mass murder in a state that still has a death penalty? Wouldn't that also be justice?”</p>
<p>Bruce's scowl turned into a fearsome glare.</p>
<p>The Allen-Clone tapped his wrist where one normally wore a watch.</p>
<p>“It was nice to meet you,” Father Todd looked rueful, “I'm sorry I got preachy at you. I'm not usually that bad.”</p>
<p>“Oh, you have your moments.”</p>
<p>“Shut up, Tad. Good-bye, Bruce.”</p>
<p>“Right-o.” Tad – Tad – clone – <em>Thaddeus Thawne? </em> “Later, Brutus.”</p>
<p>“<em>Wait</em>-”</p>
<p>They were already gone.</p>
<p>…</p>
<p>Bruce stared at the machine. He'd already calibrated the instrument to wipe his memories and the helmet was currently in his lap.</p>
<p>Alfred had found him still in the kitchen, staring out the window. Bruce hadn't mentioned anything about their futuristic visitors, preferring to keep that information to himself, and Alfred didn't know to ask.</p>
<p>But...</p>
<p>Alfred would probably have been pleased to know that Jason had grown up. Lived long enough to still see his son reach middle age. That he'd obviously adopted the errant and villainous Flash clone. Had other children. Was on at least good terms with Tim, possibly decent with Damian, and still fought with Dick.</p>
<p>Yet, did it even matter?</p>
<p>Father <em>Alfred </em>Todd had told him so many things without blatantly telling him anything.</p>
<p>For instance, Bruce was dead.</p>
<p>In the future, he would never meet his own grandchild. Never get to hold Damian's first born.</p>
<p>Bruce grasped the helmet and settled it on his head.</p>
<p>Knowing.</p>
<p>Not knowing.</p>
<p>It changed nothing.</p>
<p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>So. I'm thinking about doing a one shot for all the 'kids' Jason has/mentors in the future. (this was actually meant to be part of the Million on my Soul universe.)</p>
<p>And yep. You got it. I gave Jason a Speedster because why not EVERYONE ELSE HAS ONE. Now he just needs an Aqua-type. Like pokemon. Gotta catch 'em all.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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